Sienna

Whoa.

Yup. I almost said that aloud, and I couldn’t even blame myself if I’d actually done it. The guy standing in front of me was more than hot enough to warrant such a reaction, even during an interview. The dark jeans and midnight blue Henley he was wearing did all sorts of good things for his long and lean body. Prompting all kinds of really good things in my nether regions. His sandy blond hair looked like it was a month or two overdue for a cut, but the length worked for him. It was tousled as though he’d been running his fingers through it—which only made me want to do the same. And his sparkling green eyes... sigh.

As impossible as it seemed, Owen Walker was even more attractive in person than he was on television. I never watched cooking shows, except for his. I was hopeless in the kitchen, but it wasn’t like I watched him for the food. Although it looked amazing, too, which was a big part of why I’d chosen to apply for the waitressing job at Saphyre. The delicious food brought in a lot of customers, and they were willing to pay a lot to eat there.

From what I’d heard, those customers also tipped well. Very well. Better than Parisi’s, where I’d been working for the last year while I attended Georgia State University. Doing a double major in Biology and Chemistry, while still graduating in four years, meant I was stretching myself thin. I’d been making ends meet, but that was about it. This job would mean I’d be able to work a few less hours and even have some extra spending money. Only I hadn’t expected to meet the famous chef who owned Saphyre, let alone to find myself staring at him after he’d kicked the manager I’d been expecting to interview with out of his office. And if I managed to land the job, I never imagined he’d aim a sexy grin at me the way he was. But there he was; standing in front of me with a glint in his eyes and his lips tilted up, flashing me his pearly whites. It was enough to melt my panties right off my body.

Then his gaze dropped down to a stack of papers on the desk, and he lifted the top one to read it. I had already been nervous since it wasn’t just a stretch for me to move from a family-owned Italian joint to a restaurant with Saphyre’s reputation. It was more like a leap of faith. With how nice James had seemed, I thought I might have an outside chance of convincing him to give me a shot. But with Owen doing the interview and my sex drive deciding this was the perfect time for it to suddenly roar to life? I didn’t see it happening.

“I like the look of your resume, Sienna.”

Then again, maybe I was wrong.

His gaze lifted from the paper and paused for several seconds on my cleavage before moving up to my face.

And maybe about more than just my odds of landing the job. I wasn’t sure what to think about that, but my body seemed to be in favor of it considering the state of my underwear.

“Thank you.” My voice came out breathy, so I cleared my throat and tried to sound more confident. “I know I don’t have any fine dining experience, but I think I’d be a great fit for Saphyre. I’m really good with people, I have a great memory, and my customers always seem to be happy with my service. My tips are pretty much always higher than any of the servers at Parisi’s.”

His brow wrinkled, but I couldn’t figure out what I’d said to warrant the reaction. “Probably because most of your customers are guys,” he mumbled.

My head jerked back in surprise, and I shook it figuring I had heard him wrong. “Pardon me?”

“Our menu is much more complex than what you’re accustomed to.”

I knew that wasn’t anything close to what he’d said, but there wasn’t a way to politely call him out on it. Plus, I was more than a little irritated at the inference that I couldn’t handle this job simply because I’d spent the last year serving pasta and tiramisu. “Yes, but I’ve already spent time memorizing it. From the roasted lamb loin with sautéed sweetbread and artichokes to the macaroons; I’m familiar with all of it.” He looked doubtful, but I was confident that I’d prepared enough for this interview that I could answer almost any question he asked about Saphyre’s menu. Considering all the hours I’d spent watching his show, I’d seen him prepare many of the dishes often enough that I’d already known what was in them. Heck, I could probably describe a lot of them using the exact same phrases he did.

He tilted his head to the side, and his lips tilted up again. Only this smile held a hint of challenge instead of the masculine approval from before. I mentally braced myself, and he started quizzing me. Dish after dish, he ran down the complete menu. As soon as I answered one question, he fired off another.

“Perfect.” He leaned back in his chair and rubbed his hands together. The panty melting grin was back again.

My heart raced with excitement. “Does that mean I’ve got the job?”

“No, I don’t want you to waitress for me. I don’t like the idea of you on your feet all night, carrying heavy trays.”

“Umm, what do you think I’ve been doing for the last year?”

“True,” he conceded. “But you didn’t work for me then.”

Say what?

“And I don’t work for you now if you’re not hiring me.” This time it was my brow that wrinkled. “Besides which, don’t you have food runners here? I thought your wait staff doesn’t even carry trays.”

“Sometimes they do.”

“Well then, I could do it sometimes, too. I’m stronger than I look.”

“It wouldn’t be safe for you to lift anything heavy when you’re pregnant.”

Was that why he’d looked at my boobs? Not because he was checking me out, but because he thought I was pregnant? How embarrassing. “But I’m not. I don’t even have a guy in my life,” I blurted out, as though he needed that additional information.

“That’s what you think.”

My head reared back in shock—again. I felt like I’d been dropped into some alternate universe. One where it was normal for a famous chef to interview a lowly waitress and for him to make crazy comments throughout the meeting.

Wait. Maybe that was it. I lifted my gaze and swiveled my head, scanning the room and looking for cameras. “Are you doing some new kind of show? Is that why you’re interviewing me instead of James.” He scowled at me, and I hurried to explain. “Like a mixture between Punk’d and Undercover Boss?”

He set my resume down, rose from his chair, and prowled around his desk until he was standing in front of me. There wasn’t a ton of room for him there because of where my chair was placed, so he was close enough that I swore I could feel the body heat coming off of him. I caught a whiff of his delicious scent, sandalwood and leather with a spicy undertone, and felt light-headed. He leaned down and put a hand on each armrest, caging me in.

“No, Sienna. You aren’t part of a new television show. Nor will you be a part of an old one since I’m done with my cooking show. The reason I’m interviewing you instead of James is because I have another position in mind for you.”

All kinds of dirty thoughts slammed into my head, and I struggled to stop myself from squirming in my seat. His green eyes filled with heat, and his nostrils flared. A deep blush filled my cheeks as I wondered if he could smell the dampness from my panties, and I pressed my legs together. He gave me a knowing grin, and his voice was raspy as he continued, “I’m making some big changes in my life, and I think you’re the perfect person to be at my side during them.”